19 May the Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day^[1] (Turkish: 19 Mayıs Atatürk'ü Anma ve Gençlik ve Spor Bayramı) or simply Youth Day (Gençlik Bayramı), is an annual Turkish national holiday celebrated on May 19 to commemorate Mustafa Kemal's landing at Samsun on May 19, 1919, which is regarded as the beginning of the Turkish War of Independence in the official historiography.

The first "Gymnastics Festival" (İdman Bayramı) was held at the sport meadow of Kadıköy İttihad Sports (Union Club until 1915) by Erkek Muallim Mektebi (Teachers' College for Boys) with personal enterprise of Selim Sirri Bey (Tarcan),^[2] who was the Inspector of the Ministry of Education of the Ottoman Empire at the time. According to some sources, it was held on May 12, 1916, as to Faik Reşit Unat, in May 1916, as to Selim Sırrı Tarcan himself, in April 29, 1916.^[3] Selim Sirri Bey had brought a score of the Swedish folk music titled Tre trallande jäntor ("Three carolling girls") and collected by Felix Körling.^[4] This folk music became "Dağ Başını Duman Almış" marşı with Turkish lyrics written by Ali Ulvi Bey (Elöve) in 1917^[5] and sung in this festival for the first time.^[6]